


Because of an Empty Grave

by CharacteristicallyMinor



Category: Doctor Who (2005), Sherlock (TV)
Genre: F/M, Post Episode: s04e13 Journey's End, Post Reichenbach, The Adventure of the Empty House
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-11
Updated: 2013-06-11
Packaged: 2017-12-14 17:05:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/839275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CharacteristicallyMinor/pseuds/CharacteristicallyMinor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It was Sherlock's fake grave that they met at.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Because of an Empty Grave

John went to Sherlock's grave every Tuesday and Friday. He had gone more frequently in the early days after Sherlock's death; back then, everything he saw brought with it another wave of painful memories. John was coping better, now. He had been devastated, but he wasn't going to allow his life to end on Sherlock's account. John had gotten a job working at a clinic- not Sarah's, but one very similar.

Donna went to her dad's gravestone every other Tuesday. Her father had always thought that Tuesdays were the best day of the week; she didn't understand it, as Tuesdays had always been her least favorite day, but she chose Tuesdays as the day she went to his grave nevertheless.

Donna and John tended to go to the graveyard at about the same time of day. Eventually, John and Donna started noticing each other.

The first time they left the graveyard at the same time, John asked Donna, "Who were you visiting?"

"My dad. Why? Do you normally talk to strange women in graveyards?" Donna asked.

"Not usually, no. You're the first," John said.

"I bet you say that to all your graveyard women," Donna said.

"I just noticed you, that's all. And I'm finally getting over my flatmate's death, so I decided to have a conversation with you," John said.

"You were close to them, then?" Donna asked.

"Yeah, I was. He was my best friend. I wasn't dating him, although people thought we were dating," John said. 

"I know the feeling," Donna said.

"You do?" John asked.

"I don't know why I just said that. I've never been in that situation before; it just sounds really familiar," Donna said. "Anyways, I'm sorry that you lost him."

"Thanks. My name's John, by the way."

"I'm Donna. So, do you want to get something to eat?"

"Sounds good," John said. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Their first date was a success, and they continued going out with each other. They started talking about moving in together after they had been dating for a year. The issue with that, of course, was that John's flat was too small for two people, and Donna still lived with her mum and granddad. They started looking for somewhere to live. After a couple weeks of flat-hunting, John tentatively registered the idea of moving in at 221B Baker Street.

"I know that it's still empty- Mrs. Hudson has mentioned that she hasn't rented it out to anyone. It's close enough to clinic, and you can get work as a temp more easily there than in Chiswick," John said.

"Are you sure that you're ready to go back there?" Donna asked. "It's okay if you aren't ready."

"I know that it's okay, but I'm ready. Unlike everyone seems to think, I am, in fact, capable of living my life without Sherlock," John said.

"I know you are; don't get irritated with me. But there was a reason why you moved out after he died."

"I haven't forgotten Sherlock- that's not possible; he's fairly memorable. But it's been long enough that I don't think it will be an issue. I've been over there before, to see Mrs. Hudson, you know. Do you want to at least come see the flat? Mrs. Hudson has been asking me to bring you over to meet her for a while," John said.

"Yeah, okay. Let's go over tomorrow. I've got nothing on; do you?"

"Tomorrow's fine."

They went over to Baker Street the next day. Mrs. Hudson, as expected, fussed over them.

"John! You're getting thin; have you been eating enough recently?" she asked. "And who have you brought with you?"

"I'm Donna, John's girlfriend. I'm glad to finally meet you. I've heard a lot about you- all of it good, of course," Donna said.

"Donna! Finally. I've been telling John to bring you over for months. It's nice to meet you, dear," Mrs. Hudson said. "Come inside. I'll make tea."

They walked inside and sat in Mrs. Hudson's kitchen. They spent a while catching up before John brought up the reason that they were there.

"So, we were actually thinking of renting 221B. It's still available, right?" John asked.

"Oh! That would be wonderful! Yes, it's available. It didn't feel right to rent it out, after he died and you left. The house has been too quiet, though; I'd be glad for the company," Mrs. Hudson said.

"Great! Could I take a look around? I've never seen it before, except in some pictures," Donna said.

"Of course. John, do you want to show her, or should I come up with you two?" Mrs. Hudson asked.

"I can show her, thanks," John said.

John and Donna went upstairs to see the flat. It had been mostly emptied out. Mycroft had come to take the remainder of Sherlock's possessions after letting John take anything of sentimental value to him. John wasn't sure whether Mycroft had put them in storage or donated them; somehow, he didn't imagine Mycroft to be particularly sentimental over most of the items. The furniture was still there, of course. The flat looked a bit strange; he had never seen it this neat before.

"So, what do you think?" he asked Donna.

"I like it. It's nice," she said.

"The bathroom and Sherlock's old bedroom are down the hall; my old bedroom is upstairs," he said.

"Let's have a look, then," Donna said.

They agreed that they wanted to move in, and did so a few days later.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

John proposed to Donna on their two-year anniversary. She said yes and told him that it was about time that he asked. They started making vague plans, although they didn't set a date. Mrs. Hudson and Donna's mum nagged them to make plans continually, but they were content to be engaged for a few months before starting to make plans.

When Donna came home one day several months after the engagement, there was already someone in her flat. It was a certain tall brunette with curly hair and blue eyes.

"You're supposed to be dead! Do you know how much you hurt John?!" Donna yelled.

"You're John's fiancée, then," he stated.

"And you're Sherlock Bloody Holmes! You're dead!"

"It was necessary to fake my death in order to take down Moriarty's network," Sherlock said.

Donna punched him in the head. 

Sherlock woke up to find an irate Donna talking on the phone. While he was unconscious, Donna had duct taped the wrists of his shirt together, and she had done the same with his pants. She had also placed a bag of frozen peas on Sherlock's head.

"Yes, it's bloody him! Of course I'm sure! I'll send you a picture," she said. She hung up the phone and turned around.

"You're awake then," she said. 

"You duct taped me so as to prevent me from leaving, but you didn't tape my skin. You didn't want me to leave before talking to John, and you were afraid that I might run off. The bag of frozen peas and the lack of tape on my actual skin shows that you do care somewhat for my well-being; the punch shows that you're angry at me for what I did to John. John is very hesitant to believe that I'm alive- he doesn't want to get his hopes up- thus the picture."

"And now you've shown off how smart you are, in addition to proving that you really are Sherlock Holmes. Congratulations. Please explain yourself- or actually, wait until John gets home for that. He's the one who deserves an explanation," Donna said. While talking, Donna took a picture and sent it to John. 

John arrived at 221B fifteen minutes later.

"See! It's him, the great git," Donna said to John.

"You! You're dead! I mourned you!" John yelled at Sherlock.

"It was necessary. Had I not faked my death, Moriarty's men would have killed you, Mrs. Hudson, and Inspector Lestrade. I have worked to take down Moriarty's criminal network ever since then. It wasn't safe to return until now. As it is, there's still one member of Moriarty's network left. Colonel Sebastian Moran. He's had his men watching you for a while. He was Moriarty's second in command. He grew suspicious when everyone else in the organization began dying mysterious deaths. He believed that I would return to you eventually if it turned out that I really was alive."

"What's your plan now that he knows that you're back?" Donna asked. She removed the duct tape from his sleeves and pant legs while doing so; it was unnecessary now.

"I'll tell you that later. For now, let's go to Angelo's," Sherlock said.

"I can see that you're just as good at telling people plans as you were three years ago," John said.

"And I can see that you're just as good at pointing out the obvious," Sherlock replied.

"It's good to have you back. Not that I've forgiven you yet. How hard would it have been to leave me a message?" John asked.

"It was essential that you acted like I was dead," Sherlock said.

"Could we perhaps continue this argument at Angelo's? Not that I'm not enjoying it or anything," Donna said.

"You two go ahead; I'll catch up with you," Sherlock said.

John and Donna knew that it would be a waste of energy to argue with him. They left the house. Meanwhile, Sherlock finished what he had previously been working on with John's laptop. When he was done, he put on a disguise and exited the flat via the window.

He caught up to the couple down the block and revealed his identity covertly to them. They took a cab to Angelo's, and he removed his disguise in a nearby alley before rejoining them.

On the cab ride home, Sherlock told the cabbie stop about a block from the flat. He hadn't put his disguise on again. He refused to answer any of John and Donna's questions. 

When they got out, Sherlock asked John whether he had brought his gun with him.

"No," John said. "Of course I haven't brought it with me. You gave me no reason to expect that I'd need my gun."

"Here it is," Donna said. "What? You don't have to look so surprised. There's a sniper after us, and Sherlock's being all mysterious; this obviously wasn't going to be a peaceful trip out."

"Indeed, Donna," Sherlock said. He looked as though he somewhat approved of her.

"So, where are we going?" Donna asked after handing the gun to John.

"We're going to the building across from 221B," Sherlock said.

"That's the abandoned one, right?" Donna asked.

"Correct," Sherlock said.

"Is that where you think the sniper will be, then?" John asked.

"Of course!" Sherlock said.

"There's one problem with that- nobody's home. He won't shoot an empty house," Donna said. "So you've done something to make the house appear like it's not empty. Unless you're planning on giving yourself up as bait?"

"I used your computer, John, to play a hologram of myself playing the violin. It's also playing a recording that I made at the same time," Sherlock said. "I already told Mrs. Hudson that I faked my death earlier today, and she knows about the hologram. She's having dinner at Mrs. Turner's flat tonight, anyways. She's perfectly safe."

"Is there going to be anyone at the house other than the sniper?" John asked.

"There will be a guard posted at the entrance to the house. He'll be pretending to be busy, reading or using his phone or something. His name's Parker. He'll be armed, but he won't use his gun unless threatened. He's not supposed to draw attention to himself. That's the only other person," Sherlock explained. "We'll need to distract him in order to enter the house.

"I can do that," Donna said.

"Really?" Sherlock asked, looking doubtful.

"Of course I can bloody distract him! What, you think I'm incompetent just because I'm a woman? Really? You've got a lot of nerve, mate! What, you don't want me to cause a scene? I'll cause a bloody scene if I want to!" Donna yelled. She smiled afterwards. "So, how long do you need me to rant at him for?"

"We just need enough time to sneak past him and into the house. Of course, you should rant longer than that, to avoid suspicion. But you have to be out of sight by the time we've fought Moran; he'll try to attack you if he thinks you're working with me," Sherlock said.

"I can do that. I'll go ahead," Donna said.

Donna walked down to where the guard, who Sherlock had pointed out, was standing. He was leaning against the wall of the house they wanted to get into, and he was reading some magazine.

Donna looked across the road to where 221B was. She appeared to be looking into the window. She then turned around and saw the guard.

"Hey, you! Do you remember if a man went into the house across the street? He'd be short and blond. Only, he's my fiancé- that's our house- and I was wondering if he was home yet?" Donna said loudly.

"I'm not sure, but I don't think so. Can't you just go in and find out?" the man asked.

"Of course I bloody well can't! If I just went in there, then he'd know I was home, wouldn't he?" Donna said.

"It's your house, too. Why can't you just go in?" the man asked.

Sherlock and John slipped into the building after Donna managed to recruit the man into standing closer to the street and staring at 221B in an effort to help her figure out whether her fiancé was home. It helped that he wanted her to stop annoying him, and this was the only thing that would convince her to do so. 

After Donna was sure they were safely in the house, Donna decided it was time to end her encounter with the guard.

"You're useless! You can't even remember whether you saw someone go into a door that was right across the bloody street from you! I don't know why I even bothered to ask for help in the first place!" Donna yelled and stormed off in the direction she had come from, leaving a very confused (but relieved) guard behind her.

It occurred to Donna that she didn't know what she was supposed to be doing. She had already finished distracting the guard. She couldn't go back to her house because there was a bloody sniper planning to shoot it. It would be pointless for her to go back to the house where the sniper was- she had no fighting experience, and she'd just get in the way.

It occurred to her that it might not be a bad idea to call the police. It would be a good idea to have them around to collect the sniper and guard. Then again, it would be difficult to explain the situation, and the police would be inconvenient if it was necessary for John or Sherlock to kill the sniper.

She could stand around pointlessly for a while, waiting for news. That seemed to be the only available course of action, which annoyed her to no end.

After standing around for a few minutes and playing around with her phone to look busy, she got a phone call from John.

"You can come back now," he said when she answered. "We overpowered the sniper, and Mycroft's men have taken the sniper and the guard into custody."

"Okay, see you in a minute," Donna said and hung up.

When she got closer, she could see a couple black cars driving away from the house where the sniper had been. She could also see that John and Sherlock were walking into house 221. When she entered the flat, she saw John and Sherlock laughing. They seemed relatively unhurt- they had a few bruises, but nothing more severe than what she herself had given Sherlock earlier. She smiled and joined them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sherlock had moved back into his old room the day after he revealed that he was alive. He got along well with Donna, to John's surprise and delight. Unlike his past girlfriends, there wasn't a war for his time between her and Sherlock. She quickly set up a system of ranking dates that went along with Sherlock's system of ranking cases. Sherlock knew that he couldn't interrupt a date that ranked higher than the case he was on, and Donna didn't protest when Sherlock interrupted a date with a higher ranking case. It worked out well.

Donna married John five months later. Sherlock was the best man. He always claimed credit for their marriage- after all, it was his fake grave that they met at.


End file.
